HR technologies continue to make processes faster, easier, and moreefficient. But with the economy in slow mode and budgets down, companies arerefocusing their technology investments. The emphasis is on upgrading andintegrating HRMS functions, automating recruiting tasks, including riskmanagement, and using analytics for strategic planning.
Automated recruiting
In the recruitment area, Web-based tools integrated with talent-managementsystems facilitate line managers' hands-on participation in the hiring process."It is no longer the HR organization that's managing the hiring processfrom start to finish," says Laura Perkins, vice president of productstrategy for Ultimate Software, a provider of payroll and employee-managementsystems. "E-recruiting tools are allowing hiring managers to takeresponsibility and have more interaction with the candidate than they did in thepast." With recruiting tools on their desktops, managers are able to locateand screen candidates, thereby eliminating steps for the HR department.
There also has been a demand for increased automation of recruitment tasks,which minimizes the human element in screening. Perkins points out thatelectronic questionnaires, for example, can be designed for objective analysisof applicants' skills. She says 50 percent or more of applicants for any givenjob are not qualified. It is much more efficient to screen them out by computerthan by hand.
There is also increased integration of online career sites, which widenscompanies' exposure to prospective employees. "We're seeing tools andtechnologies that make the process instantaneous instead of fragmented, such aslive linking and broadcasting to major career Web sites," Perkins says.
Although the employment scene has taken a turn from a candidate dearth to asurplus, some organizations are preparing for the tide to turn. Marcel Legrand,senior vice president of product for online career Web site company Monster,anticipates that in a few years the labor market will be tighter than ever."I can't say when the economy will turn, but at some point, probably in2003, the switch is going to flip," he says.
Forward-thinking companies are courteous to job seekers even when they arenot hiring. Automated screening tools enable employers to respond individuallyto large pools of applicants. "A lot of applicants are really upset thatemployers who are currently in a supply deluge are really not treating themwell," says Legrand. "Progressive companies are better at treatingapplicants with kid gloves-they could be their employees of the future."Electronic tools that offer instant responses and status reports to applicantsgo a long way in giving prospective employees a positive attitude toward thecompany.
While some companies see the downturn as a time to scale back on recruitingtechnology, others are ramping up hiring management to prepare for the future."Now companies have the power," says Mark McMillan, director ofstrategy and business development for BrassRing, which provides e-recruiting andtalent-management solutions. "Their challenge becomes one of discoveringand keeping in touch with people."
Legrand says Monster has seen an increasing number of HR managers who areinterested in self-serve recruiting products. Yet he also sees companies thatare riding out the candidate-surplus wave. He says companies that think theyhave the luxury of not focusing on hiring and retention will feel it when thingsturn around.
As the Web takes a larger role in recruiting, there also has been atransformation in the way resumes are written and formatted. "The computerdoesn't care about anything but reading the resumes based on skill," saysLegrand. Monster offers tools to help applicants write resumes in line withautomated screening tools that use, for example, keyword searches and Booleanlogic.
In light of security issues, risk management has also moved to the forefrontof HR concerns. Companies want to avoid lawsuits or security problems."Because of the climate we're in now, background checks have at least comeinto the radar of any company of any significant size," says Gary Cornick,president of LexisNexis PeopleWise. "CEOs of companies have pushed this upthe ladder; they need to have a hiring risk strategy." He says companiesare looking for technology tools to reduce claims associated with negligenthiring, negligent retention, discrimination, and workplace violence. PeopleWise,which conducted identity checks for the 70,000 employees at the 2002 OlympicGames in Salt Lake City, provides products that integrate with HRMS systems andmake identity verification and background checks quick and inexpensive.
A process that used to be lengthy and tedious is automated with PeopleWise'sInstaCheck(tm). "Right now from a desktop, our clients can within a minuteand a half put in a request and do everything they need to do to order acomplete verification, including criminal search reports," Cornick says.PeopleWise has seen a rise in demand for Web-based tools to verify such thingsas applicants' education, driver's licenses, criminal records, civil records,credit reports, employment history, and professional licenses.
Monster's Legrand has also seen a surge of interest in background checks. Hesays some of Monster's customers are looking to screen large numbers ofapplicants. "It's not a fad," he says. "It will be a long-termtrend."
In light of risk-management concerns, more companies are adding automatedcheck tools to their new or existing systems. Perkins from Ultimate says,"With the advent of heightened security, we will now see more linkage tosystems for background checking and screening."
In the current environment, employers are not consumed with finding largequantities of applicants. This means they can gear their hiring systems towardtargeting quality candidates for future hires and also toward managing currenttalent.
BrassRing's McMillan says that during the employee shortage, technologies toquickly acquire new people were hot. Now companies are looking for the best HRtools to manage the people that they have. "Even though there is a decline,companies are still interested in improving their processes and hiringsystems," he says. BrassRing, whose single-platform solution helps assess,hire, retain, manage, and re-deploy current employees, as well as target futuretalent, hasn't seen a big decline in demand for its talent-management products.According to McMillan, this is because many companies are taking the long view."It is about looking at recruiting in a strategic way and not as apoint-in-time activity," he says. "It is about brand building andkeeping relationships."
Analytics for strategic planning
HR professionals are under constant pressure to justify ROI in workforcesystems. This means not only making HRMS systems as efficient as possible, butalso providing data to show returns on workforce-management tools andinitiatives. By streamlining HR processes and integrating many functions into asingle system, companies can get a better handle on outcomes.
The more processes incorporated in one HRMS system, the higher the ROI, saysLinda Miller, vice president of marketing for Ultimate Software. "A lot ofcompanies are outsourcing payroll and may be using in-house HR and paper systemsand then external services for recruitment," she says. "You want toavoid duplication and contradictions, and integrate everything from recruitmentand payroll and HR processes through the employee life cycle." She saysthere are hard numbers to show that companies achieve reasonably rapid paybackusing Ultimate Software products to integrate HR functions and provide Web-basedworkforce data access. She cites one mall-management company with 3,000employees that implemented a system with full Web capabilities and had a totalreturn on its investment in less than a year.
The integration concept extends to contingent-worker and diversity managementas well. In a move to combine tools for procuring and managing contingent andpermanent labor, workforce management technology provider Peopleclick recentlyacquired Itiliti, Inc., a provider of vendor management solutions for contractworkers. James Grundner, senior vice president of marketing and productmanagement for Peopleclick, explains that with the combined capabilities, acompany can meet its hiring needs quickly without dealing with separatetechnology platforms or point solutions.
Diversity management can also be integrated with talent-management systems tomaximize efficacy. Peopleclick's solutions help companies to go beyondcompliance for overall workforce diversity that is a talent pool with the rightmix of skills and experience. For this purpose, Peopleclick offersaffirmative-action planning products with analytical capabilities.
Self-serve meets the dream
Despite budget concerns, companies are continuing to expand Web-baseddelivery of HR. More and more companies are creating Web portals for HR domainsthat allow employees to conduct self-service tasks for functions like benefitsenrollment and training, as well as give them access to an array of companyinformation. With roles-based access that tailors delivery to users, employeesand managers have HR tools at their fingertips.
Self-service not only drives up process efficiency, it also increasesemployee satisfaction. HR Web portals are expanding the type of information andservices they offer. Ultimate Software's Perkins says her customers haveincreased their retention rates with self-service tools. She cites as an examplethe high-turnover retail business. By offering features like Web access tointernal job postings, retailers are able to empower employees to take controlof their career advancement, resulting in lower turnover.
As more employees gain Internet access, HR systems are extending moreservices through Web portals. "Five or six years ago we wouldn't haveimagined the extent of Internet access," says Ted Malley, vice president oftechnical strategy for Ultimate Software. "Now almost everyone has dial-up,and broadband is taking hold; it's becoming commonplace."
Web-based systems are becoming not only more ubiquitous but also faster."Another trend that has been enabled by the onslaught of Web services isthe ability to connect complementary functions in real-time," says Malley."Everything from time sheets to payroll and HR information is instantlyprocessed, whereas before there was a batch time delay."
Malley adds that wireless technology is also taking hold. "It isbecoming more and more of a 24/7 workforce," he says. "More of today'sknowledge workers will be connected in a distributor fashion with wirelessdevices."
Beyond streamlining processes and empowering employees, Web-based HRtechnology is increasing the visibility of HR, says Joel Summers, senior vicepresident for Oracle Corporation. "We realized years ago that if we'regoing to make the workforce a strategic advantage, we have to make it morevisible to line managers and to the organization in general," he says."Self-service means managers become sensitized to the HR process. It makesthe manager part of it." Oracle's HRMS module integrates with itsenterprise resource planning system. A system that provides key workforcemetrics as part of organizational data analysis takes visibility to anotherlevel.
In addition, many HR organizations have long endured a shortage of resourcesfor transactional tasks like payroll, benefits, policy, law, and otherday-to-day transactions. With automation of those transactions, the HR functionis able to concentrate on strategic workforce decisions.
Summers points out that workforce is either the second or third biggestexpense of a company, and increased visibility of HR data helps an organizationto analyze the value of its people. Workforce data metrics help HR managers showROI in workforce systems, while data-analysis capabilities put HR in line withorganizational objectives.
Summers says that when a body of intelligence is provided on the desktop,workforce objectives can be better aligned to corporate objectives. "Thisis what you need to manage HR in an agile manner," he adds.
The more sophisticated that HR data metrics become, the greater thepossibilities. "It's an exciting time in my field," says Lisa Harpe,industrial psychologist for Peopleclick. "We have a chance to move beyondsolutions that are just better administrative tools." Peopleclick systemsallow users to apply workforce data to critical HR planning tools.
Peopleclick's Grundner says, "What we've been doing is bringing togethera single platform for acquiring, managing, and analyzing talent in a diversitymanagement and compliant manner. In contrast to having several individualsolutions for managing these processes, one system brings it all together."
In the diversity arena, Peopleclick integrates EEO and recruiting processes,which are not traditionally connected. "Normally, recruiters are not goodat tracking the selection process," he says. "With integrated,intelligent solutions, you can build that in. The system integrates the processof recruiting candidates with diverse backgrounds."
Such data-analysis tools are equipping HR people with the information theyneed for workforce management and planning. "It is critical that HRmanagers have all the information so they can work with the executives,"says Ultimate Software's Perkins. "Things like their turnover trends,benefit cost analysis-it's not just information that HR is most concerned withbut really the entire executive group. It gives them the ability to bring thedata to the table."
With Web delivery, managers can easily access information and compare andcontrast data within an organization-wide or global context. "HR has tolook at how do I make great business decisions based on integrated datasolutions?" says Peopleclick's Grundner. "It's interesting to make agood hire, but what do you do if that hire doesn't stay for a long time? Arethey promoted? Are they wildly successful? Our tools bring the informationtogether in full workforce management."
Another area of talent management that continues to grow is Web-basedtraining. "The e-learning piece is the current excitement in theindustry," says Oracle's Summers. Oracle combines a learning-managementsystem with training administration and HR management for a system thatidentifies individual and group gaps and delivers learning programs to closethose gaps. Although online learning is all the rage, Summer adds,"e-learning and instructor-led training has to be blended."
Avoiding a catch-up game
Peopleclick's Grundner says he continues to talk with HR managers who arefrustrated by lack of investment in HRMS. "Often you'll see that thereisn't an automated method in place, or it is a decade old," he says."HR managers and IT organizations are actively looking for new solutionsbecause the one they've got is outdated or they have nothing at all." WithHR technology advancing at a rapid clip, companies that don't stay in pace arelikely to be playing catch-up in the near future.
H
